A Letter from Algerian Rabbi David Askénazi to Rabbi Kook Advocating for the Use of the Organ in Synagogue Services

Abstract In 1934, David Askénazi, the chief rabbi of Oran, Algeria, responded to a decision by Abraham Kook, at time Mandatory Palestine, condemning use organ in synagogue services Oran. Transcending typical European dichotomies between Orthodox and Reform, Askénazi’s letter is above all testimony religious cultural hybridity Algerian Jews during colonial era. mere few pages, developed argument mixing elements language arguments Maghrebian rabbis with positions common liberal Jews. Aware structure power East West, Askénazi also criticized Kook’s interventionism affairs his community. light what he denounced as form Jewish imperialism, emphasized agency Sephardic called for full recognition their tradition.